


Welcome to Chicago

by Zorant



Category: Chicago Fire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:07:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24397021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zorant/pseuds/Zorant
Summary: Follow 51 as they get a new Candidate
Relationships: Stella Kidd/Kelly Severide
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

## Welcome to Chicago

  
  


**_Chapter 1_ **

  
  


“Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambo 61, Apartment fire, 1600 Main Street!” the voice spoke over the beeping in the firehouse. Everyone on shift 2 scrambled into their bunker gear before screaming down the streets, lights flashing.

Arriving on the chaotic scene, Boden exited his truck, putting his hat on, surveying the scene. He saw alot of the residents were already sitting outside, trying to breath. What caught his attention was that they were organized in groups. His brow furrowed as his paramedics rushed over and starting to administrator first aid. His eyes caught someone running out of the blaze, a towel tied around his face, carrying a child in his arms.

  
  


“51, get a line on that fire now, 81 and Squad 3 help with search and rescue!” Boden ordered, running over to the civilian. “Thank you sir. Our Paramedics will take over. You should get yourself checked over.”

“Aye Chief,” the man said taking off the towel and handing the child to Brett. He looked back at the fire. “There is still a family trapped on the 2 nd floor. Apartment 203”

“Casey, Severide, there is a family in Apartment 203!” Boden immediately relayed. He nodded his head at the man before resuming control of the craziness. 

Brett lead the man to the back of the ambo. She placed a mask on his face when she noticed something. Frowning, she rolled up his sleeve and saw a burn on his wrist and gasped. She immediately began to treat it when her partner jumped into the cab and drove to med. Once there, she wheeled him in and got him into the ED, where a nurse brought him to a bed. She noticed that the girl was also rushed into ER. She began to fill out papers when she saw him walking out towards her.

  
  


“Brett right?” He asked, a slight accent to his voice. He was dressed in scrubs. 

  
  


“That's right,” Brett answered, looking at him. “That was smart the way you had everyone organized into groups. Not many civilians would think of that.”

  
  


“Training I suppose,” he answered her, his eyes holding a question. “Have you got any word on the girl?”

  
  


“Nothing yet but she's alive,” Brett answered him softly, knowing that look. She almost let a smile grace her lips as she saw him visibly relaxed a little. “And that family made it out.”

  
  


“That's good,” he said, leaning against the counter. “Glad they will be ok.”

“You said you had training?” Brett asked, finishing her report. 

  
  


“Yeah,” he answered her. “Toronto Firefighter, or rather, retired I guess you can say.”

  
  


“Retired? And Toronto? That's a long way from Chicago,” Brett exclaimed. She zipped up her jacket.

  
  


“Moved to Chicago about a year ago,” he replied. “It's nice to meet you and thank you for giving me an update on the girl and her family. I will let you get back to work.”

  
  


“No problem,” Brett smiled. She turned around and began to walk before a thought struck her. “You should visit Firehouse 51. We would love to have you there.”

“Thank you. Might do that,” he said, not really sure if he would. He turned back around when he noticed a doctor coming. 

  
  


The sun shone, blanketing the sky in a nice orange glow. He wasn't sure why he was here or how he even got here but standing in front of him was Firehouse 51. The rigs were all inside, the bay doors open. The sound of people working, laughing and talking hit his ears. He adjusted his Toronto Blue Jays hat and zipped up his blue jacket, trying to get comfortable.

He took a breath, trying to calm his nerves as he walked up the driveway. His eyes caught a memorial in which he paused and paid his respect. He bowed his head for a moment, not aware that someone was looking at him. 

“Hey,” came a voice beside him. “Otis was my best friend. He was the beating heart of this place. He died, saving us.”

“Sounds like he was a great guy,” R.J said softly, looking over at the man beside him. “I'm sorry I won't have the privilege in meeting him.”

“Thanks man, I do appreciate it,” he replied softly. He held out his hand. “I'm Cruz.”

“R.J,” he grasped the man's hand. 

“You are the guy from yesterday,” Cruz pointed out. “How are you doing?”

“Doing well now that I know the family will be good,” R.J replied. His eyes wondering around the place. “Paramedic Brett said I should drop by and visit. Hope that's ok.”

“Of course, let me give you the tour,” Cruz said, as he lead him into the garage. He paused as R.J stopped at the doors, taking in the familiar scene and scent.

The smell of diesel hit his nose, the sounds of a brotherhood hit his ears and being this close to a firehouse in a long while. He was trying to soak it in. He nodded to Cruz, who came to stand beside him.

“It's been a while since I have been inside a firehouse,” R.J admitted. “I just forgot how much I missed it.” 

“You were a firefighter?” Cruz asked in surprise, though looking back now, he should have seen it. “That's how you knew to separate the groups yesterday.”

“Yeah, been over a year now,” R.J replied, his eyes taking in everything he could. He spotted Brett walking by but she didn't look his way. She disappeared into the common room. R.J stepped inside, aware that Squad was watching him with curiosity. Cruz lead him to them.

“Hey guys, this is R.J,” Cruz introduced him to Squad 3. “He's a former firefighter and helped yesterday at the fire.”

“Oh yeah, I remember you,” Capp said, sitting on a chair. He was currently reading the paper. “Good too meet you.”

Kelly nodded at him. “LT Kelly Severide. Squad 3.”

“Nice to meet you LT Severide,” R.J nodded at him. 

“I'm Tony, the driver of this rig,” Tony said, his elbows on the table. 

“Lunch is ready,” Brett called out from the door. She saw R.J and sent him a smile. “Nice to see you again.”

“Thanks again for the invitation,” R.J smiled at her. He watched as she went back into the common room, and watching the guys enter it. Cruz mentioned him to follow. 

“Guys, this is R.J,” Cruz introduced him to the group, grabbing himself a plate. “This is Casey, Kidd, Gallo, Ritter, Herrmann, and Mouch.”

“He's a Canadian firefighter,” Brett chipped in, sitting beside Foster, eating. 

“Oh really?” Casey asked. “What is a Canadian firefighter doing in Chicago?”

“Former Canadian firefighter,” R.J corrected him, grabbing himself a small plate. “I actually live in Chicago now.”

“That's pretty cool. How long have you been here?” Gallo asked. 

“About a year,” R.J replied. “I was actually on my way to Florida for a vacation but my car broke down in Chicago, and well, a year later, I haven't left.”

  
  


“Well, welcome to Chicago,” Kidd said. 

“Where are you from?” Brett asked. She was leaning back in her chair.

“Toronto,” R.J responded, pointing to his cap. “I might be a Chicago residence but I still support my Jays.”

“As long as you don't cheer for the Blues,” Herrmann joked with the new guy. 

“Bah! Blues suck!” R.J immediately called out, much to everyone's cheer.

“I like this guy,” Kidd said, raising her glass to him. 

“So what do you do in Chicago?” Cruz asked, putting his plate in the sink.

“I am a chef,” R.J said, finishing his plate as well. 

“Good for you,” Foster called out, getting up to grab plates.

At that moment, Boden walked into the common room with a smile. He paused when he saw R.J and went towards him, holding out his hand.

“I want to thank you for your help yesterday,” Boden thanked the man. “I'm Chief Boden.”

“A pleasure Chief,” R.J said. Boden swore he could have seen a small flicker of emotion in his eyes before he blinked. “Well, I want to thank you guys for the tour and lunch but I should get going.”

R.J nodded to everyone and walked out of 51, which confused everyone. After a moment, the bells rang, signally they are needed.

  
  


  
  


  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Only focusing on R.J right now, so I can bring him into the family.

**Welcome to Chicago!**

_**Chapter 2** _

_**Milestones Restaurant** _

“Listen up! We need croquettes for an appy! We need a medium well steak with risotto and veggies, we need a salmon with a caesar salad to start!” R.J shouted down the line. 

“Heard chef!” his line cooks responded. 

Milestones was popping off, moreso then normal on a tuesday night. R.J didn't mind at all. In fact, he welcomed it as he led his line through dinner service. He poked his head up and noticed the place emptied out, so he decided to take his break. He cooked himself a simple chicken dinner and seat in a booth. He took out an pamphlet for the CFD and began reading it. 

“Thinking of jumping ship?” Julie asked, teasing him as she sat down.

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” R.J retorted, putting the brochure down.

“Maybe,” Julie grinned, taking a bite of her food. Her red hair tied into a bun. “Are you thinking of applying?”

“I won't lie, I thought about it,” R.J admitted. “I thought I was done with that chapter of my life but something is pulling me back to it.”

“About time,” Julie said with a grin. “I see you look every time a truck rushes by. I can tell you miss it.”

“Just I don't know if I can do it again,” R.J said softly, his hand going towards his neck. He pulled out a chain with a gemstone on it. 

“What happened wasn't your fault,” Julie replied, holding his hand over the table. She was staring into his brown eyes. “You have to stop feeling guilty about it.”

“I appreciate that but I will always feel guilty,” R.J said sadly. “I should have seen the signs.”

“Richard-John! You listen to me!” She said sternly, causing nearby people to snap their attention towards them yet her eyes were only on R.J. “You didn't cause it. In fact, you stopped it and because of you, it won't happen again. You reached out and tried, which is more then what others did. You did the right thing.”

R.J just searched her eyes, trying to determine if she means that. After a few seconds of looking, he nodded. “Thank you Julie.”

“No problem. What are friends for?” She grinned back. “As much as we love you here, you don't belong in the kitchen.”

R.J scratched his chin, thinking about it when Julie put the final nail in the coffin. “Do it for her, R.J!”

“Fine, I will go tomorrow,” R.J relented but inside, he felt like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders. “Could take awhile though before I hear.”

“That's fine,” Julie smiled, happy for her friend. “As long as you apply, that's all that matters.”

“I'm gonna clock out. Want to go grab a drink?” R.J asked her, getting up. 

“Nah, I have to finish my report for my class tomorrow,” Julie huffed out, following R.J to the kitchen. “Have fun Mr. Firefighter.”

R.J just rolled his eyes but as he left the restaurant, he couldn't help but wear a smile. He was finally going to be doing what he loves again.

_**Firehouse 51 (a week later)** _

“Hey Chief,” Casey knocked on Boden's door. “Do you have a moment?”

“Come on in,” Boden nodded. He stood up from his chair. “What's up Casey?”

“I got invited to teach a few classes at the fire academy next week,” Casey reported. “Just wanted to see if that would be alright?”

Boden smiled and nodded his head. “Go for it Captain. I will get someone to cover you for those shifts.”

“Thanks Chief,” Casey said, exiting the door. He walked into his office, sat down and started his mountain of paperwork. After a few hours, he looked up and saw that his squad were sleeping in their bunks. With a soft smile, he got up and walked to the kitchen to grab a snack. He paused when he spotted Gallo sitting at the table with a cup of something, looking like he couldn't sleep. 

“Everything ok Gallo?” Casey asked, walking to the new candidate. 

“Yeah. Just couldn't sleep tonight,” Gallo said. 

“That was a rough call tonight,” Casey replied softly, sitting down beside Gallo. 

“I just can't get her out of my mind,” Gallo said, his voice hovering with pain. “I know we did the right thing, but I can't help but wonder what if, you know.”

“Hey, none of that,” Casey said firmly. “You can't play that game or it will eat you alive. Trust me, I know. Just focus on the save. Because of your quick thinking, we were able to save 4 people.” 

Gallo nodded, taking a sip of his drink. “I know. It's the first death I have had since joining CFD. And the fact she was the same age as my sister, it hit a little harder.”

“Losing someone in a fire will never be easy,” Casey sympathized. “Especially those that hit closer to home, but you have a family here who will help you out any time of the day. Lean on us and don't keep it bottled up. Just like Kidd said, we help each other through those tough calls. Alright?”

“Thanks Casey,” Gallo said with a grateful voice. “Think I will try to get some sleep before the next call.”

“Night Gallo. Remember, we are here if you want to talk,” Casey reminded Gallo. Casey watched Gallo leave the kitchen before getting up and making a sandwich. He looked up and saw Boden walking by with a smile on his face before he went back to his office. He turned around to put the dishes in the sink and nearly jumped out of his skin when a voice spoke.

“Everything ok with Gallo?” Kelly asked, walking into the kitchen. He grinned when he saw Casey jump. “I can go get Brett. I'm sure she will love to jumpstart your heart.”

“You're an ass,” Casey rolled his eyes, once his heart stopped beating. 

“Are you seriously just figuring that out now?” Kelly replied with a grin. He sat down at the table. “Every thing alright with Gallo?”

“He had his first death tonight,” Casey said with sadness in his voice. “She was the same age as his sister.”

“Oh that's rough,” Kelly said. “Losing someone is always hard, but having it remind you of someone you know, that's tough. Will he be ok?”

“I think he will but just the same, I will be keeping an eye on him,” Casey said, eating his sandwich. He offered half to Kelly, who shook his head no. 

“I'll keep an eye as well. How's he doing on truck?” Kelly asked.

“He's doing well. He's learning,” Casey said, a hint of proudness in his voice. “He'll make a great Captain one day.”

“He will. Actually, I wanted to ask you something,” Kelly said, studying Casey. “What are your thoughts about training him for Squad?”

Casey's eyes widen in shock. “I never thought about that. What do you think?”

“He has a while to go and is rough around the edges, but I do think he would make a good addition to Squad,” Kelly said truthfully. He leaned back in his chair. “I will run it by Boden soon but I wanted to get your thoughts first.”

“Give it some time, but I do agree. He will be great for Squad,” Casey agreed with his friend. “I've got a stack of paperwork that needs to be done. I'm gonna try and get alot of that done before a call. I will see you later.”

“Same. If you need my help with Gallo, just let me know,” Kelly said, getting up and headed back to his office.


End file.
